The Kansas City Chiefs are in a little bit salary cap bind at the moment. And right at the forefront of all of it is wide receiver Sammy Watkins.
Watkins is set to enter the final year of his contract in 2020. And he has a current cap hit of $21 million. That's a big number, especially for a wide receiver that did not do much after Week 1 last year.
In Week 1, Watkins racked up nine receptions for 198 yards and three touchdowns. The rest of the season he caught 43 passes for 475 yards and no touchdowns. That production simply isn't good enough to warrant that massive of a hit to the Chiefs' cap.
However, the receiver came back to life in the playoffs. In three games, he recorded 14 receptions for 288 yards and one touchdown, playing a big role in the Chiefs' success.
But now both the team and the wideout are in a tough spot. And head coach Andy Reid is not giving a definite answer on the situation. In fact, he's being a little cryptic.
Reid wouldn't commit one way or the other about whether Sammy Watkins would be able to remain with Chiefs under current contract. He added, "We sure like Sammy. He's done a great job for us.''
— Adam Teicher (@adamteicher) April 2, 2020
According to Chiefs general manager Brett Veach, Kansas City plans on bringing Watkins back. Or at least, they did, back in February. Things may have changed since.
Those changes may have started to become more clear too, as Kansas City re-signed wide receiver Demarcus Robinson in March. On the other hand, that could mean nothing — the Chiefs need depth at receiver anyways.
However, the re-signing coupled with Reid's comments makes this a confusing situation. Reid certainly sounded like he was thanking Watkins for his service, as though they are ready to move on.
We'll have to wait and see what the Chiefs decide to do with Watkins. His cap hit certainly is a large one and will need to be addressed.
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